An Exploration of Cultural Sensitivity

Abstract

In seeking to provide a custodial therapeutic environment able to meet the diverse needs of every prisoner, an understanding of the background and cultural heritage of each individual is an essential component of a comprehensive assessment, case formulation, and therapeutic engagement. It is especially important for prisoners whose historical, systemic, social, and familial backgrounds deviate from those of the White British majority. This study, through qualitative interviews, explored the experiences of eight randomly selected Black or Minority Ethnic (BME) prisoners (within this study this refers to prisoners who did not identify themselves as being White British1) who had been engaged in therapy for a minimum of 12 months, to determine how culturally sensitive HMP Grendon, as a therapeutic community prison, was to their culture and backgrounds. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results indicated that Grendon’s BME prisoners experienced a lack of cultural sensitivity when engaging with the therapeutic process. Five main themes emerged: therapy and cultural values; relating to others; cultural competency; cultural understanding/awareness; and responses to experiences. Ways identified to improve this include increased staff awareness and providing increased opportunities for BME prisoners to share their experiences.